August 8
Events *1220 - Sweden was defeated by Estonian tribes in the Battle of Lihula. *1509 - The Emperor Krishnadeva Raya is crowned, marking the beginning of the regeneration of the Vijayanagara Empire. *1576 - The cornerstone for Tycho Brahe's Uraniborg observatory is laid on Hven. *1585 - John Davis enters Cumberland Sound in quest for the Northwest Passage. *1588 - Anglo-Spanish War: Battle of Gravelines - The naval engagement ends, thus ending the Spanish Armada's attempt to invade England. *1605 - The city of Oulu, Finland, is founded by Charles IX of Sweden. *1647 - The Irish Confederate Wars and Wars of the Three Kingdoms: Battle of Dungans Hill - English Parliamentary forces defeat Irish forces. *1786 - Mont Blanc on the French- Italian border is climbed for the first time by Jacques Balmat and Dr Michel-Gabriel Paccard. *1793 - The insurrection of Lyon occurred during the French Revolution. *1794 - Joseph Whidbey and George Vancouver lead an expedition to search for the Northwest Passage near Juneau. *1810 - Eminent Urdu poet Mirza Ghalib married Maaroof, daughter of Nawab Ilahi Baksh, and moved to Delhi. *1839 - Beta Theta Pi is founded in Oxford. *1844 - The Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, headed by Brigham Young, is reaffirmed as the leading body of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (the LDS or Mormon Church). *1863 - American Civil War: Following his defeat in the Battle of Gettysburg, General Robert E. Lee sends a letter of resignation to Confederate President Jefferson Davis (which is refused upon receipt). *1863 - American Civil War: Tennessee's "military" Gov. Andrew Johnson freed his personal slaves. During the early 20th century, the day was celebrated by blacks in Tennessee as a holiday. *1870 - The Republic of Ploieşti, a failed Radical-Liberal rising against Domnitor Carol of Romania. *1876 - Thomas Edison receives a patent for his mimeograph. *1908 - Wilbur Wright makes his first flight at a racecourse at Le Mans, France. It's the Wright Brothers' first public flight and the French public goes wild. *1910 - The US Army installs the first tricycle landing gear on the Army's Wright Flyer. *1911 - The millionth patent is filed in the United States Patent Office by Francis Holton for a tubeless vehicle tire. * 1911 - Public Law 62-5 sets the number of representatives in the United States House of Representatives at 435. The law would come into effect in 1913. *1918 - World War I: Battle of Amiens begins a string of almost continuous victories with a push through the German front lines. *1929 - The German airship Graf Zeppelin begins a round-the-world flight. *1931 - Workers go on strike at the Hoover dam *1938 - The building of Mauthausen concentration camp begins. *1940 - "Aufbau Ost" directive was signed by Wilhelm Keitel. *1942 - World War II: In Washington, six German would-be saboteurs are executed. * 1942 - Quit India resolution was passed by the Bombay session of the AICC, which leads to the start of a civil disobedience movement across India *1945 - World War II - The Soviet Union declares war on Japan and invades Manchuria. * 1945 - The United Nations Charter is signed by the United States, which becomes the third nation to join. *1946 - First flight of the Convair B-36. *1947 - Pakistan's National Flag is approved. *1949 - Bhutan becomes independent *1962 - Elizabeth Ann Duncan becomes the last woman to be executed in the United States prior to the reintroduction of capital punishment in 1977. *1963 - Great Train Robbery: In England, a gang of 15 train robbers steal 2.6 million pounds in bank notes. *1967 - The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is founded. *1968 - Jurō Wada successfully performs Japan's first heart transplant. *1973 - U.S. Vice President Spiro Agnew goes on television to denounce accusations he had taken kickbacks while governor of Maryland. * 1973 - Kim Dae-Jung, a South Korean politician and later president of South Korea, is kidnapped. *1974 - Watergate scandal: U.S. President Richard Nixon announces his resignation, effective the next day. *1980 - The Buttevant railway accident in Ireland occurred. *1986 - Altaf Hussain's address at Nishtar Park Karachi, announcement of establishing political movement MQM. *1988 - The "8888 Uprising" occurs in Burma. * 1988 - The lights are turned on at Wrigley Field for the first time, making it the last major league stadium to host night games *1989 - Space Shuttle program: STS-28 Mission - Space Shuttle Columbia takes off on a secret five-day military mission. *1990 - Iraq occupies Kuwait and the state is annexed to Iraq. This would lead to the Gulf War shortly afterward. *1991 - Collapse of Warsaw radio mast, the tallest construction ever built * 1991 - John McCarthy, British Journalist held hostage in Lebanon for more than five years by Islamic Jihad, is released. *2000 - Confederate submarine H.L. Hunley is raised to the surface after 136 years on the ocean floor. *2007 - An EF2 tornado touches down in Kings County and Richmond County, New York, the most powerful tornado in New York to date and the first in Brooklyn since 1889. Births *1079 - Emperor Horikawa of Japan (d. 1107) *1518 - Conrad Lycosthenes, humanist and encyclopedist (d. 1561) *1605 - Cæcilius Calvert, colonial Governor of Maryland (d. 1675) *1646 - Godfrey Kneller, German-born painter (d. 1723) *1673 - John Ker, Scottish spy (d. 1726) *1693 - Laurent Belissen, French composer (d. 1762) *1694 - Francis Hutcheson, Irish philosopher (d. 1746) *1720 - Carl Fredrik Pechlin, Swedish politician (d. 1796) *1807 - Emilie Flygare-Carlén, Swedish novelist (d. 1892) *1814 - Esther Morris, first U. S. female judge (d. 1902) *1839 - Nelson Miles, U.S. general (d. 1925) *1857 - Cécile Chaminade, French pianist and composer (d. 1944) *1866 - Matthew Henson, Arctic explorer (d. 1955) *1875 - Artur da Silva Bernardes, President of Brazil (d. 1955) *1879 - Emiliano Zapata, Mexican revolutionary (d. 1919) * 1879 - Bob Smith, American physician and surgeon, founder of Alcoholics Anonymous (d. 1950) *1880 - Earle Page, 11th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1961) *1881 - Albert Kesselring, German field marshal (d. 1960) * 1881 - Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist, German field marshal (d. 1954) *1882 - Ladislas Starevich, Polish stop-motion animation filmmaker (d. 1965) *1884 - Sara Teasdale, American poet (d. 1933) *1891 - Adolf Busch, German violinist (d. 1952) *1892 - Rafael Moreno Aranzadi, Spanish footballer (d. 1922) *1898 - Alexis Minotis, Greek actor (d. 1990) *1896 - Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, American author (d. 1953) *1901 - Ernest O. Lawrence, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1958) *1902 - Paul Dirac, English physicist Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1984) *1904 - Achille Varzi, Italian race car driver (d. 1948) *1905 - André Jolivet, French composer (d. 1974) *1907 - Benny Carter, American musician (d. 2003) *1908 - Arthur Goldberg, U.S. Supreme Court justice (d. 1980) *1910 - Sylvia Sidney, American actress (d. 1999) *1911 - Rosetta LeNoire, American actress (d. 2002) *1915 - Jumbo Elliott, American track coach (d. 1981) *1919 - Dino De Laurentiis, Italian film producer *1920 - Leo Chiosso, Italian lyricist (d. 2006) * 1920 - Jimmy Witherspoon, American singer (d. 1997) * 1920 - Carol Lambrino, son of Carol II of Romania and Zizi Lambrino (d. 2006) *1921 - William Asher, American film producer * 1921 - John Herbert Chapman, British physicist (d. 1979) * 1921 - Webb Pierce, American singer (d. 1991) * 1921 - Vulimiri Ramalingaswami, Indian medical scientist (d. 2001) * 1921 - Esther Williams, American actress and swimmer *1922 - Rory Calhoun, American actor (d. 1999) * 1922 - Rudi Gernreich, Austrian-born fashion designer (d. 1985) *1925 - Alija Izetbegovic, President of Bosnia-Herzegovina (d. 2003) *1926 - Richard Anderson, American actor *1927 - Johnny Temple, American baseball player (d. 1994) *1928 - Don Burrows, Australian musician *1929 - Larisa Bogoraz, Soviet dissident (d. 2004) * 1929 - Ronald Biggs, British criminal *1931 - Sir Roger Penrose, British physicist *1932 - Mel Tillis, American singer * 1932 - Luis García Meza Tejada, Bolivian dictator *1933 - Joe Tex, American singer (d. 1982) *1935 - Donald P. Bellisario, American television producer * 1935 - John Laws, Australia radio personality *1936 - Keith Barron, English actor * 1936 - Frank Howard, American baseball player *1937 - Dustin Hoffman, American actor *1938 - Connie Stevens, American singer and actress * 1938 - Jacques Hétu, French Canadian composer *1939 - Alexander Watson, American ambassador and diplomat *1940 - Dennis Tito, first space tourist *1944 - Brooke Bundy, American actress *1947 - Ken Dryden, Canadian ice hockey player and parliamentarian * 1947 - José Cruz, Puerto Rican baseball player * 1947 - Larry Wilcox, American actor *1948 - Svetlana Savitskaya, Russian cosmonaut *1949 - Keith Carradine, American actor * 1949 - Ricardo Londoño, Colombian racing driver *1951 - Mamoru Oshii, Japanese film director * 1951 - Randy Shilts, American journalist and author (d. 1994) *1952 - Jostein Gaarder, Norwegian author * 1952 - Robin Quivers, American radio personality *1953 - Don Most, American actor * 1953 - Nigel Mansell, English one-time Formula One World Champion *1955 - Diddú (Sigrún Hjálmtýsdóttir), Icelandic soprano and songwriter * 1955 - Herbert Prohaska, Austrian footballer *1956 - Branscombe Richmond, American actor *1958 - Deborah Norville, American television host * 1958 - Cecilia Roth, Argentine actress *1960 - Ulrich Maly, Mayor of Nuremberg *1961 - The Edge, Irish guitarist (U2) * 1961 - Daniel House, Owner C/Z Records * 1961 - Rikki Rockett, American drummer (Poison) * 1961 - Bruce Matthews, American football player *1962 - Mike Zanier, Canadian ice hockey player *1963 - Jon Turteltaub, American director * 1963 - Stephen Walkom, Canadian ice hockey official and executive *1964 - Anastasia Ashman, American writer *1965 - Kate Langbroek, Australian media personality * 1966 - Chris Eubank, English boxer * 1966 - John Hudek, American baseball player *1967 - Marcelo Balboa, American soccer player * 1967 - Lee Unkrich, American director and film editor * 1967 - Rena Mero, American wrestler *1969 - Faye Wong, Hong Kong singer and actress *1970 - Trev Alberts, American football player * 1970 - Pascal Duquenne, Belgian actor *1972 - Axel Merckx, Belgian bicycle racer * 1972 - Lüpüs Thünder, American musician (The Bloodhound Gang) *1973 - Scott Stapp, American singer (Creed) * 1973 - Senta Moses, American actress *1973 - Shane Lee, Australian cricketer *1974 - Ulises De la Cruz, Ecuadoran footballer * 1974 - Scott D'Amore, professional wrestler and manager * 1974 - Andy Priaulx, British racing driver *1976 - JC Chasez, American singer (*NSYNC) * 1976 - Tawny Cypress, American actress * 1976 - Drew Lachey, American singer * 1976 - Seung-Yeop Lee, Korean baseball player *1977 - Kurt Bernard, Costa Rican footballer * 1977 - Szilard Nemeth, Slovak footballer * 1977 - Lindsay Sloane, American actress * 1977 - Rocky Thompson, Canadian ice hockey player *1978 - Louis Saha, French footballer * 1978 - Alan Maybury, Irish footballer *1979 - Richard Harwood, British cellist * 1979 - Rashard Lewis, American professional basketball player * 1979 - Paris Latsis, Greek shipping heir *1980 - Sabine Klaschka, German tennis player * 1980 - Pat Noonan, American soccer player * 1980 - Michael Urie, American actor and director *1981 - Vanessa Amorosi, Australian singer and songwriter * 1981 - Roger Federer, Swiss tennis player * 1981 - Meagan Good, American actress * 1981 - Kaori Iida, Japanese singer and actress * 1981 - Bradley McIntosh, British pop singer *1983 - Guy Burnet, British actor *1985 - Brayan Ruiz, Costa Rican soccer player *1986 - Peyton List, American actress *1987 - Katie Leung, Scottish actress *1988 - Princess Beatrice of York *1989 - Sesil Karatantcheva, Bulgarian tennis player *1991 - Stefán Jóhann Eggertsson, Icelandic poet *1995 - Malin Reitan, Norwegian singer Deaths * 869 - Lothair II of Lotharingia (b. 825) *1445 - Oswald von Wolkenstein, Austrian composer *1553 - Girolamo Fracastoro, Italian physician (b. 1478) *1555 - Oronce Finé, French mathematician (b. 1494) *1588 - Alonso Sánchez Coello, Spanish painter *1604 - Horio Tadauji, Japanese warlord (b. 1578) *1631 - Konstantinas Sirvydas, Lithuanian lexicographer (b. 1579) *1684 - George Booth (b. 1622) *1747 - Madeleine de Verchères, New France heroine (b. 1678) *1759 - Carl Heinrich Graun, German composer (b. 1704) *1827 - George Canning, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1770) *1828 - Carl Peter Thunberg, Swedish naturalist (b. 1743) *1863 - Angus MacAskill known as 'Giant MacAskill', circus performer (b.1825) *1879 - Immanuel Hermann Fichte, German philosopher (b. 1797) *1887 - Alexander William Doniphan, American lawyer and soldier (b. 1808) *1897 - Jacob Burckhardt, Swiss art historian (b. 1818) *1898 - Eugène Boudin, French painter (b. 1824) *1902 - James Tissot, French artist (b. 1836) *1911 - William P. Frye, American politician (b. 1830) *1933 - Adolf Loos, Austrian architect (b. 1870) *1940 - Johnny Dodds, American musician (b. 1892) *1944 - Chaim Soutine, Russian painter (b. 1894) * 1944 - Erwin von Witzleben, German field marshal (b. 1881) *1944 - Michael Wittmann, German Tank ace and Knight's Cross holder, killed in action, Normandy. (b. 1914) *1947 - Anton Ivanovich Denikin, Russian general (b. 1872) *1950 - Fergus McMaster, Australian businessman (b. 1879) *1961 - Méi Lánfāng, Chinese opera performer (b. 1894) *1965 - Shirley Jackson, American author (b. 1916) *1969 - Otmar Freiherr von Verschuer, German eugenicist and nazi physician (b. 1896) *1972 - Andrea Feldman, American actor (b. 1948) *1973 - Dean Corll, American serial killer (b. 1939) *1973 - Vilhelm Moberg, Swedish author and historian (b. 1898) *1974 - Baldur von Schirach, Nazi youth leader (b. 1907) *1975 - Julian "Cannonball" Adderley, American jazz saxophonist (b. 1928) *1977 - Edgar Douglas Adrian, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1889) *1979 - Nicholas Monsarrat, British novelist (b. 1910) *1980 - Paul Triquet, French Canadian army officer (b. 1910) *1982 - Eric Brandon, British racing driver (b. 1920) *1985 - Louise Brooks, American actress (b. 1906) *1987 - Danilo Blanuša, Croatian mathematician (b. 1903) *1988 - Alan Napier, English actor (b. 1903) * 1988 - Ramón Valdés, Mexican actor (b. 1923) * 1988 - Félix Leclerc, Quebec singer and songwriter (b. 1914) *1991 - James Irwin, astronaut (b. 1930) *1992 - Grand Ayatollah Abul-Qasim Khoei, considered to be the Supreme Shi'ite authority at the time of his death * 1992 - John Kordic, Canadian ice hockey player (b. 1965) *1996 - Nevill Mott, Nobel Prize Laureate (b. 1905) *1998 - Mahmoud Saremi, Iranian journalist *2004 - Fay Wray, American actress (b. 1907) * 2004 - Dimitris Papamichael, Greek actor (b. 1934) *2005 - Barbara Bel Geddes, American actress (b. 1922) * 2005 - John H. Johnson, African-American publisher (b. 1918) * 2005 - Gene Mauch, American athlete (b. 1925) * 2005 - Monica Sjöö, Swedish artist (b. 1938) * 2005 - Ilse Werner, German actress (b. 1921) * 2005 - Ahmed Deedat, Islamic scholar (b. 1918) *2007 - Ma Lik, Chinese politician (b. 1952) * 2007 - Melville Shavelson, American film director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1917) * 2007 - Joybubbles, A notable phone phreak. (b. 1949) Holidays and observances *Sweden - Namesday of Queen Silvia, an Official Flag Day. *Taiwan: Father's Day. (In Mandarin, Ba Ba means father and 8-8, or August 8). *Roman Catholicism - the feasts of at least 5 saints: **St. Dominic de Guzman, priest, (1170-1221). **St. Cyriacus **St. Largus **St. Smaragdus (and companions) **St. Hormisdas External links * BBC: On This Day * * On This Day in Canada ---- Category:August